Some years, however, have been rougher than others. What follows is my quick look at the top five most depressing drafts in Timberwolves history, with the ranking determined by situations that were depressing at the time, not just in hindsight.

5. The scandal years — 2001, 2002, and 2004

These years represent the three first-round picks the Timberwolves forfeited as a result of the Joe Smith scandal.

It was depressing to live through at the time, and perhaps even more so in hindsight — think of how much the relatively bereft roster surrounding Kevin Garnett could’ve been bolstered by three first-round talents!

4. 2003 — Ndudi Ebi

After two years in which the Wolves didn’t have a first-round pick thanks to the Smith scandal, the franchise picked 23rd overall in 2003.

With that selection, Wolves brass selected a player so obscure, even NBA Commissioner David Stern was caught totally off guard:

Ebi’s NBA career went on to last all of 19 games. The three players selected immediately after him were Kendrick Perkins, Leandro Barbosa, and Josh Howard, all of whom went on to have productive NBA careers.

3. 2007 — Corey Brewer over Joakim Noah

Coming into the 2007 NBA Draft, Corey Brewer and Joakim Noah were both raw prospects who had a lot of success as Florida Gators.

But Noah had superior size and the potential to be a rim-protecting defensive anchor, while there were questions about how Brewer’s frenetic game would translate to the NBA. I remember being solidly pro-Noah at the time, with visions of a Garnett-Noah frontline dancing through my head. (The Wolves ended up trading KG about two months later.)

Instead, then GM Kevin McHale opted for Brewer, who struggled mightily early in his career for terrible Timberwolves teams before developing into a solid role player — a far cry from Noah, who has been one of the league’s best big men for the better part of a decade.

Bonus entry — 1992 — Ended up with the third overall pick and selected Christian Laettner when the draft was widely regarded to have two stud players at the top, Shaq and Alonzo Mourning. Losers, indeed.

2. 2010 — Wes Johnson over DeMarcus Cousins

DeMarcus Cousins was universally regarded as having a much higher upside than 23-year-old college senior Wes Johnson at the time, but there were questions about whether he could keep his head screwed on straight.

Johnson was the type of long, athletic prospect that GM David KAAAHN coveted, and so with the fourth pick, he opted for him over Cousins, who went one pick later to Sacramento.

Cousins mostly hasn’t kept his head screwed on straight, but that hasn’t stopped him from developing into one of the league’s elite athletic bigs. Meanwhile, as many predicted, Johnson never really developed and is lucky to still be cashing NBA paychecks at this point.

It was a totally uninspiring selection when it happened and looks even worse in hindsight.